***Kregel Academic Book Review: Interpreting the Wisdom Books***

Kregel Academic does it again! I had previously read the volume Interpreting Apocalyptic Literature and was amazed by the depth of knowledge of the writers! So when Kregel asked me to review the exegetical book “Interpreting the Wisdom Books” I couldn’t say no! So lots of people have written section by section what they like about the book or what each section covers; so I won’t waste your time doing that; instead I am going to hit some highlights of what made this book stand out to me, as both a scholar and as a future pastor.

For me, a lot of the time, I forget to look at the big picture of a book or the theme of the book I am reading. Section 2 for me was the beginning of the main course, if you will. I had just finished learning about “What Wisdom is” and how Poetry played a part in that; but the real meal began for me when we started talking about themes, then delving into them a bit deeper. This series of books does not just scratch the surface of the Bible, while written as a text book, and not particularly thick, the books still take time to really bite into the meat and to give you enough of a grasp that you can continue to tear pieces out of the book you are studying and gain a greater understanding of the Bible.

As a minister of the Gospel, sometimes I, like many of my fellow ministers, shy away from the Song of Solomon. As a book that is written as a love poem between two people, it’s hard to pick out themes in the book which may relate to our society. However, this book made the SOS easier to use it to proclaim God’s love; especially since the Song of Solomon is a highly relational book—geared more towards relationships between men and women. So for me, as a single woman, this book made SOS a bit friendlier, useful and has given me some courage towards being able to quote this book without wondering if the quote I am choosing is truly relational, and how it is relational towards people.

Finally, I really like how each of these books as a series, and this one is no different, gives you the tools to prepare for interpretation, also guidance on how to interpret and finally to proclaim the wisdom these books give us. A lot of people don’t have the opportunity or desire to sit through hours, weeks, or months of Hebrew/Greek classes—So while these books are text books, they are also very friendly towards lay-speakers and armchair theologians.

Would I recommend this to my friends who have never read the Wisdom books for learning exegesis? Yes! The book is easy to read, it’s written to both lay members, scholars and ordained ministers alike. I don’t think the language of the book is lacking anywhere, all points are concise and given proper space for the type of book this is. Out of 5 stars, I would give this book a solid 4; it wasn’t a boring text book and I do recommend this book to anyone wishing to learn more about interpreting the wisdom books.  

The Twelve Tribes and the Yellow Deli Cult

I find it fascinating that people will call an outlier church a cult until they find one they like. I have sat with people over coffee, who will blatantly call the Roman Catholic Church the Whore of Babylon, they will sit in their high castle and cast stones at Mormons and the Jehovah’s Witnesses; but when a CULT settles in a small town near them, just because they serve good food—they won’t research it and call it what it is…a cult! Instead they attempt to pastor bash, guilt and tell folks like myself that "Jesus ate with sinners." Yes, He did--but the sinners Jesus ate with, were seeking something deeper. They weren't just sinners, they were seekers--seeking truth. These people at this deli, think they have already found their truth--and it's sadly a truth that will lead them farther from God, instead of into the arms of Jesus. 

A lot of people have been talking about this place called “The Yellow Deli” in Hiddenite, NC. Evidently they serve amazing sandwiches and are friendly people. Great, nothing wrong with going to get a sandwich at a deli and meeting friendly people—there is however, something wrong with eating and drinking with a cult member who is seeking your soul to join their group. Don’t think that this couldn’t lead to something worse? Ask David Thibodeau. I am sure, the night he spent playing drums with David Koresh, he didn’t expect to be pulled in to the Branch Davidians. After spending time at Mt. Caramel, Thibodeau recounts “I was also attracted to the rigorous learning and the discipline at Mt. Carmel, two elements that had been lacking in his own upbringing. It was refreshing to see a group of people who lived it and wanted to live their lives according to scripture. To me that was an honorable thing," he says. "The way they came off as people who really wanted to know impressed me." You notice, what he’s saying “They came off as people who really wanted to know.” In a documentary on the Yellow Deli one of the guys who is a member says, “We live by Acts 2:44. It says All the believers were together and had everything in common.” Just like the Branch Davidians, the Twelve Tribes don’t have independent income, or independent debt, everything is sold and you live in a commune giving all your income to “the tribe.”

Then today, because I mentioned I would never eat at the Yellow Deli, I was told that as a Christian I shouldn’t judge people who do; and that my job is to go out and make disciples and that I wouldn’t be much of a pastor if I didn’t do those things. So to counter that I am going to say this “so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes.” (Ephesians 4:14, ESV) 2 Timothy states “For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions.” (2 Timothy 4:3, ESV) Romans 16:17 (ESV) says “I appeal to you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles contrary to the doctrine that you have been taught; avoid them.”

By not supporting The Yellow Deli, I am not opening my mind to the crooked beliefs of a cult—someone a group that founds their entire teaching on 2 scriptures. But Rachel, what about the scripture that says “Go forth and make disciples, baptizing in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit?” We definitely can’t forget that, however, they aren’t seeking the one true God—they are opening their doors so that those who enter are looking for their god. It would be different if they were looking for the God of the Bible and not a god that they’ve imagined would work for them—their god is of this world. They may not be as bad as the Branch Davidians, but a cult is a cult—equally dangerous no matter the size—and they are a tool of Satan meant to pull people way from God.

I use 15 definitions to identify a cult; and none of them are “Do they wear funny clothes?” Here they are: 

• Over Zealousness ~  Shows displays of excessively zealous and unquestioning commitment to its leader and (whether he is alive or dead) regard his belief system, ideology, and practices as the Truth, as law.
• Complete Adherence to The Vision ~  No Questioning, doubting, or dissent are discouraged. These actions may lead to punishment.
• Mind Control Techniques ~ Mind-altering practices (such as meditation, chanting, speaking in tongues, denunciation sessions, and debilitating work routines) are used in excess and serve to suppress doubts about the group and its leader(s).
• Supreme Dictatorship ~ The leadership dictates, sometimes in great detail, how members should think, act, and feel (for example, members must get permission to date, change jobs, marry—or leaders prescribe what types of clothes to wear, where to live, whether or not to have children, how to discipline children,  post on social media, etc.).
• Special Revelation ~ Claiming a special, exalted status for itself, its leader(s) and members (for example, the leader is considered the Messiah).
• We Have The Truth, Not Them ~ The group has a polarized us-versus-them mentality, which may cause conflict with the wider society. Only they hold the truth, and no other group can be in allegiance with them.
• The Unaccountable Leader Syndrome ~ Leader(s) are not accountable to any authorities inside or outside the group (unlike, for example, teachers, military commanders or ministers, priests, monks, and rabbis of mainstream religious denominations).
• The Means Justify The End ~ Group will teach or implies that its supposedly exalted ends justify whatever means it deems necessary. This may result in members' participating in behaviors or activities they would have considered reprehensible or unethical before joining the group (for example, lying to family or friends, or collecting money for bogus charities).
• Shunning ~ Leaders induces feelings of shame and guilt to influence and control members. Often, this is done through peer pressure and subtle forms of persuasion. (Fasting from outside group activities, friends outside the group).
• Total Adherence ~ Subservience to the leader or group requires members to cut ties with family and friends, and radically alter the personal goals and activities they had before joining the group.
• Growth Obsession ~  There is a preoccupation with bringing in new members.
• You Must Pledge Your Money/Possession To Us ~ The group is preoccupied with making money or having its members adhere to excessive group funding conditions.  Also may want to control wills, bank accounts etc. 
• The Devotion of Time ~ Members will be expected to devote inordinate amounts of time to the group and group-related activities. Disregarding past relationships and even family relationships from those outside the group.
• Relationship Polarization ~  Members are encouraged or required to live and socialize only with other group members. In other words, if you are not part of the group you cannot be part of the member’s lives.
• True Believer Fallacy ~  The most loyal members  are the “true believers.”  They teach that and feel that there can be no life outside the context of the group. They believe there is no other way to be, and often fear reprisals to themselves or others if they leave (or even consider leaving) the group.

So yes, the Twelve Tribes is a cult—I will personally be treading far from them—but it seems my friends would rather “eat with the sinners” and get caught up in every wind of false doctrine.

Better...not Bitter

As I have written my call story for the dCom meeting in a couple of weeks, I had my pastor read over it and he again reminded me that I will probably have to talk about being asked to leave The Cove. But he also reminded me that I need to speak from a place of being better not bitter. That has really sat in my heart this week--I can't figure out how to get past what I think of as forgiveness. 

Then my friend Michelle posted something that The Cove pastor, David Porter said today "Sometimes our feelings have to catch up with our forgiveness; and they will when our hearts are healed." When I read this it made sense, but if I could ask David one question it would be "How long before our heart heal?" Because when I see the people who hurt me, I have anxiety attacks, I get scared, I start to wonder if I have done something wrong just by continuing to exist. So, how long before I heal? 

Bitterness is something we feel never will happen to us.I've been lucky to have experienced a lot of different jobs in my short 38 years. I've been a journalist, I've worked in retail, I've worked in education, been a bus driver, I work in home improvement now, I've worked as a youth pastor, and am working to become a pastor now. All of these jobs have allowed me different experiences, from flying in a B-17 bomber to meeting presidents to leading people to Christ; and through all of this, I have never met one person who has made it out unscathed by life. We go through life opening our hearts to many people, seeking friendship in this life. But when we least expect it someone hurts us, or circumstances themselves come to a place where we allow bitterness to come into our hearts towards even God himself. Feeling angry and disappointed over how we have been treated or how circumstances have treated us produce great bitterness in our being. But just because it's a created feeling, doesn't mean it's right. 

So this week, I started something that would help me become less bitter about my past and towards the people who have treated me unfairly/broken my heart. I have started to find the good in every day!

To start this project I got thinking about what I was bitter over and at whom I am bitter. I think we all know who came to mind--so I pulled out a picture that we took together several years ago and every day I walked by it and said "I forgive you; I don't understand what happened or why you hate me, but I forgive you."  So today when I saw some associates of hers, I didn't feel anxious or hurt. Instead, I again prayed for her associates, because they are like the evildoers of Proverbs 17:4. 

Then I stopped at the grocery store to get some Sierra Mist. While there, I ran into the a former boss that allowed a teacher to bully me out of my job. I greeted her with a huge smile and asked about her children--who were in my classes in school and also my sunday school students. She was evidently taken aback by my friendliness. I say this, only because she didn't know how to react or even what to say other than "I hear you want to be a pastor." I smiled and said "Yes, I do and am working on that even today!" She got this strange look on her face and so I said "Ya know, I want to thank you for keeping me at Cloverleaf as long as you did. I also want to thank you for believing the worst about me when someone lied and said I was writing a book about killing a teacher. Thank you for allowing Dr. Lasane to do her job and move me away from one toxic environment to another; because if none of this had happened; I wouldn't be exactly where I am today!" She just looked at me and said "It's good to see you...have a nice day!" 

A lot of folks would see what I said as being a smartalec, that truly wasn't the case in this matter. I can truly say that if I had stayed in the school district, I wouldn't be back to blogging, I wouldn't be working towards ministry and I certainly wouldn't be trying to become a better, healthier--mentally, physically, emotionally, person. 

So what has helped me other than walking past a picture and granting forgiveness to someone who really hurt me deeply? 

First, I decided to recognize the hurt--sounds simple enough--but it's not. I really think the period of discernment that I have been in for the past 7 months, has allowed me to grow beyond myself. I give the hurt a name--in this case it's Cedar, The Cove, Cloverleaf, Liars, cheats, false witnesses, the past. I acknowledge that those things are still out there--but I know that they in and of themselves aren't inherently evil--they are controlled by Satan. So I acknowledge that we have a spiritual battle going on. Then I decided to take some steps that would help me heal. I asked myself "What makes you feel good?", next I concocted a way to become better by exercising these things daily: Here's what my plan looks like on a pretty regular basis. 

1. Feel gratitude Daily. Yes, it seems like the furthest thing from your mind and heart when you are hurting, but being grateful for what you do have is a great way to experience more peace in the middle of pain. Surely you can find some reason to have gratitude if you search your heart.

2. Let others express sympathy, even if you don’t want to hear it.  Hearing others’ healing well wishes is more than therapeutic; it puts forth into motion that very healing you are seeking. Let your friends tell you they are sorry for you. It doesn’t make you weak; in fact, it strengthens you more.

3. Allow yourself to hurt. It is ok to cry and feel heartbroken. You must do this in order to put it behind you and move towards peace. In spite of what you have been taught, crying is not for babies, it’s for healing healthy people.

4. Move towards a goal daily. Any goal will do just as long as you can move towards it. Set your eyes on something that you want to achieve, and make steps every day to get there. This will move you past the pain and into something else that is good for you.

5. Laughter is, in fact, medicine. Get together with that one friend that always makes you laugh, and let yourself laugh. It doesn’t mean you aren’t grieving or you aren’t upset with what happened. It means you know that you need a little dose of human interaction sprinkled with some good ol’ fashion chuckles. It will help you in so many ways.

The Death of Stephen Hawking--Was it too late for God's Grace?

Physicist Dr. Stephen Hawking

Yesterday, one of the greatest minds in science passed away. This man wasn’t supposed to live beyond the age of 24, due to having Lou Gehrig’s disease. However, he was given 55 years more to ponder the greatest question “Where did the universe come from?” Hawking would answer that as this “Spontaneous creation is the reason there is something rather than nothing, why the universe exists, why we exist,” he wrote in The Grand Design. “It is not necessary to invoke God to light the blue touch paper and set the universe going. God is the name people give to the reason we are here,” he said. “But I think that reason is the laws of physics rather than someone with whom one can have a personal relationship. An impersonal God. Before we understand science, it is natural to believe that God created the universe. But now science offers a more convincing explanation,” he said. “What I meant by ‘we would know the mind of God’ is, we would know everything that God would know, if there were a God, which there isn’t. I’m an atheist.”

Yesterday when I heard this great scientist died, I immediately thought “Well, Mr. Hawking, how did you enjoy that meeting with your creator that you vehemently denied while He was giving an amazing amount of time to turn to Him?” Ironically, Mr. Hawking’s first wife, Jane Hawking is a devout Christian and took care of him throughout their marriage.

Yet when I returned home tonight, I saw a post by Franklin Graham that presumed to judge that Professor Hawking went straight to Hell. Immediately I remembered that I had made that same presumption based on my understanding that Hawking was an atheist. So tonight, I got to thinking about what if Professor Hawking in his last breath sought out God? So I sat down at my computer to contemplate this more and found a video of Professor Hawking and while he does state that the modern thought of the afterlife is for those who are scared of the dark, he also states “We can’t prove there was not a creator.” When I read this, I heard the word “Sufficient.” 2 Corinthians 12:9 states “But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.”

My next question was “So Rev. Graham, what will you do when you get to heaven and Professor Hawking is there? What will you think? What will your words be then? What will do you if Judas Iscariot walks up? How will you react? What will your words be then? What of that person you dislike with a passion? What then?” God’s grace is sufficient! It’s BIG and it can reach us at the exact moment of our last breath if we grasp on to it!

No matter where you are in life, maybe you don’t feel like you are good enough for God’s grace, well, you’re not. I am not going to tell you, you are worthy, you’re not. Neither was I, nor anyone else for that matter. EVEN Franklin Graham isn’t worthy of God’s love! But God loves us so much that He sent His Son Jesus to suffer death, to pay a debt that we could NEVER pay that we might live. Now maybe you want to know more about salvation and why you need to be saved; keep reading, I will tell you.

How can I be saved? Why do I need to be saved?
We are all infected with sin (Romans 3:23). We are born with sin (Psalm 51:5), and we all personally choose to sin (Ecclesiastes 7:20; 1 John 1:8). Sin is what makes us unsaved. Sin is what separates us from God. Sin is what has us on the path to eternal destruction.

How can I be saved? Saved from what?
Because of our sin, we all deserve death (Romans 6:23). While the physical consequence of sin is physical death, that is not the only kind of death that results from sin. All sin is ultimately committed against an eternal and infinite God (Psalm 51:4). Because of that, the just penalty for our sin is also eternal and infinite. What we need to be saved from is eternal destruction (Matthew 25:46; Revelation 20:15).

How can I be saved? How did God provide salvation?
Because the just penalty for sin is infinite and eternal, only God could pay the penalty, because only He is infinite and eternal. But God, in His divine nature, could not die. So God became a human being in the person of Jesus Christ. God took on human flesh, lived among us, and taught us. When the people rejected Him and His message, and sought to kill Him, He willingly sacrificed Himself for us, allowing Himself to be crucified (John 10:15). Because Jesus Christ was human, He could die; and because Jesus Christ was God, His death had an eternal and infinite value. Jesus’ death on the cross was the perfect and complete payment for our sin (1 John 2:2). He took the consequences we deserved. Jesus’ resurrection from the dead demonstrated that His death was indeed the perfectly sufficient sacrifice for sin.

How can I be saved? What do I need to do?
“Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved” (Acts 16:31). God has already done all of the work. All you must do is receive, in faith, the salvation God offers (Ephesians 2:8-9). Fully trust in Jesus alone as the payment for your sins. Believe in Him, and you will not perish (John 3:16). God is offering you salvation as a gift. All you have to do is accept it. Jesus is the way of salvation (John 14:6).

After you read this, if you want to know more about salvation or about finding a Bible believing church or maybe you’ve decided to accept Jesus as your savior and you just want someone to know, you can use the “Contact me” form and I will be more than happy to answer your questions. If you want someone to pray for you, use the same form, I will pray. If you want to send me a private message, again, use the “Contact me” form—make sure you add an email address in the form so that I can write you back personally. You can also contact me at thewitnessservant@gmail.com. I’d love to hear from you!

I'll still say Yes!

Jesus never said that storms wouldn’t come in to our lives. In 2016 when I first started to think about working in ministry; I lost my job in the school system due to some choices, I had made. I also found a job that I was actually good at and enjoyed! Yet a storm came in December 2016—and ended on January 17, 2017—with a consent judgement that two former friends would never be friends again. It was heart-breaking for at least one of us. Due to depression and wanting to focus on my new job, I stopped pursuing ministry. In September of 2017, I answered the calling to ministry. According to William J. Abraham and David F. Watson “The Holy Spirit is always calling to us, always reaching out to us and it is our choice to say yes or no to the Spirit. Once we say yes to God, however, we have the responsibility to continue saying yes to God.” It seemed that everything was going well for me…then it happened, Satan started throwing those fiery little darts my way. Storm clouds seemed to start gathering…and immediately became nervous about accepting my call to ministry. I got wait listed by Duke—which may have turned out to be a blessing in disguise—at least to me as an orthodox, conservative leaning Christian. By Sunday, my anxiety was sky high and I started to think "I will just forget ministry...it's not worth being bullied, harassed and having other bare false witness about you."

On Friday evening, I revealed I had been harassed at a concert for children as I was leaving. It was hard to endure bullying yet again. I am 38 years old and a former coworker seems to enjoy harassing me. What makes this hard is that this is someone that was an amazing friend; and one that I never thought would betray my trust in her. David addressed this in Psalm 55:12-14 “For it is not an enemy who taunts me—then I could bear it; it is not an adversary who deals insolently with me—then I could hide from him. ¹³ But it is you, a man, my equal, my companion, my familiar friend. ¹⁴ We used to take sweet counsel together; within God's house we walked in the throng.”(ESV)  I like how “The Message” interprets this verse “This isn’t the neighborhood bully mocking me—I could take that. This isn’t a foreign devil spitting invective—I could tune that out. It’s you! We grew up together! You! My best friend! Those long hours of leisure as we walked arm in arm, God a third party to our conversation.” (The MSG). Had I known 100% that this person was going to be at this event, you can believe I would have stayed as far away as I could have from the concert and I wouldn’t have invited my church family into the situation.

Then on Saturday, during my first break at work, I sat in my car—crying—because I was still reeling from the previous night’s events. As I sat in my car, in tears, I turned on my “YouVersion” Bible app. I did what we call a flip and dip (Closed my eyes and picked a book and verse to listen to). The verse I picked was Proverbs 17:4 “An evildoer listens to wicked lips, and a liar gives ear to a mischievous tongue.” Immediately my heart was moved to sympathy for the women who were “following the leader.” But that didn’t stop the anxiety and hurt that I was experiencing. I walked back into work and my coworker asked if I was okay, and I just looked at her with tears in my eyes and replied “I could be better.” She looks at me, and said “Rachel, Jesus is with you! He’s with you every step of the way. Remember the three boys in the fiery furnace? Jesus was with them, and they didn’t burn up—they were tested—they prevailed with God’s help. And what about Job? He lost everything!” I stopped her and reminded her that Job’s wife said “Curse God and die.” She said “I don’t remember telling you to think about Job’s wife! I said JOB! He lost everything but his faith—he was tested—he prevailed. You are going to be fine!”

I came home that night and immediately decided to spend my time in prayer! “God, please stay the hand of mine enemy.” Then I started thinking about all those verses in Psalm where David prayed that God would defeat his enemies. Psalm 54:1-3 O God, save me by your name, and vindicate me by your might. ² O God, hear my prayer; give ear to the words of my mouth. ³ For strangers have risen against me; ruthless men seek my life; they do not set God before themselves. Selah Sunday during church, I focused on the sermon, but also on the Psalms, because this weekend, David’s words have really resonated with me. Here was a man after God’s heart and he was being harassed and picked on. Psalm 41:9 states “Even my close friend in whom I trusted, who ate my bread, has lifted his heel against me.” David, and God himself already know what I am going through, the hurt that I am feeling. Once I got home though, God really drove it home for me though that He knows exactly what I am feeling. Matthew 26: 20-25 ²⁰ When it was evening, he reclined at table with the twelve. ²¹ And as they were eating, he said, “Truly, I say to you, one of you will betray me.” ²² And they were very sorrowful and began to say to him one after another, “Is it I, Lord?” ²³ He answered, “He who has dipped his hand in the dish with me will betray me. ²⁴ The Son of Man goes as it is written of him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been better for that man if he had not been born.”²⁵ Judas, who would betray him, answered, “Is it I, Rabbi?” He said to him, “You have said so.” Jesus knew that someone he loved would betray Him and you can almost hear Jesus sorrowfully stating this passage. Yet, Jesus loved Judas even to the end—so much so that Jesus went to the cross for even Judas. Luke 22:3 proves that Judas didn’t act on his own accord “³ Then Satan entered into Judas called Iscariot, who was of the number of the twelve.”

As I started to think about the way that I was treated, and even though I thought about it on Friday evening and even mentioned it to my pastor, it hit me like a ton of bricks…my former friend isn’t acting on her own accord—I seriously think that Satan is using her because Satan knows exactly what weapon to use against us. Isaiah says 54:17 “no weapon that is fashioned against you shall succeed, and you shall refute every tongue that rises against you in judgment. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord and their vindication from me, declares the Lord.”

On Friday, during my final meeting with my candidate mentors, I presented the following picture with the words written on it “Reflect the Son!” This world is a dark place, and while we may have friends who slip into darkness without realizing that they are in a place of darkness. I am fairly certain that my former friend doesn’t realize that she’s being used as Satan’s weapon against me.

Some friends have asked me “Why not take this woman to court and all I can say is 1 Corinthians 6 encourages us to stay away from lawsuits instead verse 6:7b states “Why not rather suffer wrong? Why not rather be defrauded?” Personally I’d rather be wronged and defrauded. Romans 12:19-21 “Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” ²⁰ To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” ²¹ Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” So how do we heap coals on people’s heads when we can’t give them food or drink? We pray for them; we love them. Matthew 5:43-44 ⁴³ “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ ⁴⁴ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,” While this weekend has been rough, and I nearly quit again—I will not allow Satan the pleasure of quashing my love for Christ and ministry—I will continue to be a minister of the Gospel of Jesus Christ; no matter what happens—I will, with God’s help, prevail. Until then, I will pray for the salvation of those who persecute me, that God will bless and keep them; and that I'll still say yes!

Praying for those who hurt you...

John 16:33 is one of my favorite Bible verses. “I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”

Tonight, I attended a family/children’s concert with my pastor and his wife! As many know, I found out when I was 28 that I wouldn’t be able to have children, so having friends with kids that I can hang out with is amazing! So tonight we went to a children’s Bible concert and as I left the “Slugs and bugs” concert; I was reminded that we all struggle. Sometimes those struggles are of our own doing, other times they are circumstantial and yet other times we are hurt by our brothers and sisters in Christ. As someone who has seen her fair share of troubles—and most recently having a sister in Christ try to defame me before the world—I forget that every week our church buildings house a melting pot of broken, abused, suffering, prideful people—people just like me! We are all broken and in need of the love and forgiveness of Christ. 

After the concert, as we (my friends and I) walked to the cars, I saw that I had a missed call, so I got in my car and was checking the phone number (telemarketer) that had called me prior to the concert that I didn’t realize I had missed. So while I waited for some cars to pull out from behind me, I sat in the car with my engine running, and attempted to call the number back. Since I wasn’t really paying attention to the people around me, I didn’t notice a sister in Christ who severely hurt me walk out to her car—I glanced in my mirror and noticed that there was no one behind me and I put my car in reverse. As I was backing out, I noticed a flash, so I looked forward and my sister in faith and her two friends were photographing my car. Feeling completely isolated in that moment—a moment when two others who don’t even know me bought whatever lie this “sister” told—I pulled off. All the way home, I cried. What had I done to deserve to be lied about and photographed without my consent, possibly to be taken back to civil court? I very nearly wanted to stop and ask her friends: “Is this person’s hate, drama, and negativity keeping you from being the person God wants you to be?” But I didn’t; I came home and immediately documented the entire evening. Then I told my pastor whom I had been at the concert what happened…then with all sincerity, I asked the following question “I shared a pretty deep friendship with this person and the behavior she’s exhibiting isn’t the person I know her to be, matter of fact, I am pretty sure it’s demonic. Am I wrong to continue praying for her?”

My Pastor’s advice was “No; but you definitely want to keep your distance.”

So I began to look at “How to heal and bless someone who has hurt you?”

I found this article by Candace Crabtree; and it makes sense. When someone hurts you, you need to do these three things:

1. Take your eyes off of the hurt and the person, put your gaze on Christ. 

We can’t keep looking at the hurt and the situation and replaying it over and over in our minds. We must fix our eyes on Jesus. We must dive into His Word. Turn on praise music. Do not dwell on the problem or the feelings you have about the situation. As hard as it is, choose to think on things lovely, noble, true and right. 

2. Pray for the person who has hurt you. 

There is no better way to bless someone than to intercede for them. Pray for God to bless them, pray for God to grow their love for Him, pray for God to do good things in their lives. Pray, pray, and pray some more. When words don’t come, ask the Holy Spirit to intercede for you. When you are hurt, mad, and broken, take your brokenness to the cross. Ask Jesus to fill you with His supernatural love and power. 

3. Extend grace. 

Remember the grace you’ve been shown. Ponder your own life and how you’ve been shown grace upon grace. Now, go and do likewise. What does this look like? Letting the other person off the hook. Showing kindness to the person.  Not ignoring the person. Not returning evil for evil. Bestow kindness and grace. 

The Jew’s have a teaching in the Talmud “If you have done your fellow a little wrong, let it be in your eyes great; if you have done him much good, let it be in your eyes little; if he has done you a little good let it be in your eyes great; if he has done you a great wrong, let it be in your eyes little.

When we don’t forgive, the bitterness and the grudge take ahold of us. We carry the bitterness into every aspect of our lives. We grow weary and begin to die spiritually. I know when we begin to look at it in that way, we can begin to choose forgiveness. Surely not many of us would choose spiritual death and a turning away from Christ. 

Turn to Christ, beloved. Turn to Christ and be forgiven so that you can now walk in a life of forgiveness and love for others.

Jesus gives several specific examples in Luke 6:27-36. In verse 28, for example, he says: "Bless those who curse you." To bless, in this instance, means to speak well of someone or to speak kindly to that person. Perhaps there is someone in your place of work who is spreading false rumors about you in order to advance above you. How will you respond? According to Jesus, not by retaliating. Rather, you are to love this "enemy" by speaking well of him, even when his back is turned. Or, when you see her, you should address her politely and graciously.

Jesus adds, "Pray for those who hurt you." There is nothing wrong with asking the Lord to get them to stay their hand. When I think about asking God to stay someone’s hand that is coming against me, I am reminded of King David, the psalmist most associated with imprecatory verses such as Psalm 55:15, 69:28, and 109:8, often used phrases like, “may their path be dark and slippery, with the angel of the LORD pursuing them” (Psalm 35:6) and Psalms 7, 35, 55, 58, 59, 69, 109, and 139 were written by David to ask God to bring judgment upon his enemies.

But praying for those who hurt you doesn’t involve asking God to hurt our enemies, or for bad things to happen to them, instead it involves asking that good happens for them, seeking the Lord's presence in their lives and transformation of their hearts. Using imprecatory prayers from the Psalms today should only be done against our spiritual enemies (Ephesians 6:12). Instead, we are to pray for their salvation first and foremost, and then for God’s will to be done. There's no greater blessing than a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, and that’s what Jesus means by praying for and blessing those who curse us.

So I am going to say this yet again: I may never know your friendship this side of eternity again; I may be brokenhearted that I lost the closest thing to a sister I will ever know. I know I made mistakes in our friendship; I don’t hate you. I forgive you. I am going to keep praying for you, knowing that God’s grace goes before you and will meet you when you are ready.

“Let us then approach God's throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.” Hebrews 4:16